Since the dawn of professional sports, it has been common among sports fans, athletes, and others to display sports memorabilia, such as autographed baseballs. While it is of course possible to have players autograph baseballs at sports memorabilia stores, or other locations, a significant number of autograph signings occur at the baseball field prior to a game's start, when players practice and interact with the fans. Nevertheless, this informal and impromptu signing procedure presents a number of problems to both the signing player and the fan.
First, as the player usually does not return to the field from practice but is likely to sign the balls before leaving, he will likely still have on equipment like batting gloves or mitts, which become dirty through game play and which are themselves cumbersome to have to hold on to while also signing a baseball. Additionally, the sweat from a player's hands after a vigorous practice can itself damage the baseball, either by dirtying the surface of an unsigned ball or smearing other signatures on a baseball signed by more than one player. Such scuffing and dirtying of the baseball is of course highly deleterious to its aesthetic and monetary or collectible value. It would therefore be desirable for a fan or baseball collector desiring to have a signed baseball clean from dirt and other field debris to provide the player with a ball which is at least partly clean of such dirt or debris.
Next, as stated previously, the signing player is signing a baseball standing on the field of play while carrying his mitt. Oftentimes the player will be straining for any type of leverage against which he can more easily grip or sign the ball. Many players who would be agreeable to signing a baseball might nevertheless choose not to do so because of these practical obstacles in physically signing the ball. It would therefore be desirable for both a fan or baseball collector and a signing player to provide that player with some form of leverage to assist the player in physically signing the ball while standing.
Finally, many times a player who would be willing to sign a baseball is stymied in his attempt because he does not have a pen. Given the short amount of time a player has between the end of practice and having to depart the field, waiting for a fan to produce a pen is not something a player wishes to do. Also, many times a casual fan does not possess a pen but would still like to have a genuine autographed baseball. It would therefore be desirable for both a fan or baseball collector and a signing player to provide that player with simultaneously with both a baseball to be signed and a pen for the player to use in one convenient package.
A survey of the prior art reveals many devices useful for storing and displaying signed sports memorabilia, which are advantageous to the fan or collector by preventing a viewer from directly handling the memorabilia and thereby damaging the piece, and by protecting the piece from environmental degradation. Thus, U.S. Pat. No. 6,016,910 to Rodearmel describes and claims a device for displaying sports memorabilia having a base member and a memorabilia holder extending outwardly from a display surface of the base member. A music box may also be mounted to the base member, and at least one of the base member, holder or music box comprises indicia such as shapes, decorations, and sounds related to the sport of the memorabilia to provide an enhanced sensory experience for the viewer. Additionally, U.S. Pat. No. 5,379,892 to Reams, et al., describes and claims a protective display case for collectible items such as baseballs and other collectible items, comprising a rigid transparent tube which contains the baseballs and through which they can be viewed; one end cap at each end of the transparent tube to retain the balls; and a rigid backboard to which the end caps are attached for the purpose of holding the end caps in their fixed rigid position. However, while each of these devices indeed helps protect and display the signed baseballs, none of these in any manner facilitates the initial signing of the baseball.